How To Make a DNA Model Using Candy...

Making DNA models can be informative, fun, and in this case tasty. Here you will learn how to construct a DNA model using candy. But first, what is DNA? DNA is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic information for the reproduction of life. Its shape is that of a double helix and its appearance is somewhat of a twisted ladder or spiral staircase. DNA is composed of nitrogenous bases (adenine, cytosine, guanine and thymine), a five-carbon sugar (deoxyribose), and a phosphate molecule.

Nucleic Acids

                                                                             Nucleic acids allow organisms to transfer genetic information from one generation to the next. There are two types of nucleic acids: deoxyribonucleic acid, better known as DNA and ribonucleic acid, better known as RNA.

When a cell divides, its DNA is copied and passed from one cell generation to the next generation. DNA contains the "programmatic instructions" for cellular activities. When organisms produce offspring, these instructions, in the form of DNA, are passed down. RNA is involved in the synthesis of proteins. "Information" is typically passed from DNA to RNA to the resulting proteins.

Nucleic acids: Nucleotides

Nucleic acids are composed of nucleotide monomers. Nucleotides have three parts:

• A Nitrogenous Base
• A Five-Carbon Sugar
• A Phosphate Group

Similar to what happens with protein monomers, nucleotides are linked to each other through dehydration synthesis. Interestingly, some nucleotides perform important cellular functions as "individual" molecules, the most common example being ATP.

Polynucleotides

In polynucleotides, nucleotides are joined to one another by covalent bonds between the phosphate of one and the sugar of another. These linkages are called phosphodiester linkages